Precāre ad Astra
by Ldzetc
Summary: What happens when an artist falls in love with his own creation?  Master sculptor Kurosaki Ichigo has truly surpassed himself with his latest project- a life size commission of a certain blue-haired god in all his Greek glory. Pygmalion: Bleached.


Ichigo wiped the sweat off his brow as he finished yet another day's hard work in the thick Roman heat. The newly renamed month of August had been particularly busy month this year for the sculptor. Orders had been piling up while Ichigo continued to perfect his current project, a life-sized, full body sculpture of the deity for a worn down temple in the red light district.

For what seemed like the thousandth time that day, calculating brown eyes were magnetically drawn to the statue as Ichigo searched for any signs of imperfection. After weeks and weeks of hard work, he was finally satisfiedk. A few more finishing touches and it would be complete.

At twenty-five, Ichigo Kurosaki was considered an oddity. His father had been a slave before he bought his own freedom and set up a sculpting business. Well before Ichigo was born, the name Kurosaki already went hand in hand with excellence in sculpting. Ichigo had loved sculpting as long as he could remember. He studied under his under his eccentric father for many years before he took over the family business at the young age of 15. Isshin had followed only a few years after his mother to the underworld, leaving Ichigo as the head of the household with two young sisters to take care of and a business to run. These new responsibilities only seemed to spark a burning desire to support his family. Within three years Ichigo had successfully taken over his father's role as master sculptor in all of Rome.

Unlike most wealthy Romans, Ichigo owned no slaves. Against his sister's protests, he set all of the household slaves free once they had left home to live with their husbands. The bright haired sculptor ran his house and work completely on his own. Several years ago, Ichigo had no shortage of apprentices begging him day after day to take them on. After several long months of turning them away, the master sculptor finally relented only to have every single one quit within a week of starting their apprenticeship. After several months of having a different apprentice every week, rumors of Ichigo's ruthless work ethic and fierce nature had finally spread and he was finally able to work in peace.

Despite his lack of amiability and being the son of a freedman, Ichigo had somehow become one of the most eligible bachelors in Rome. After years of turning away his suitors, the sculptor had developed quite the distaste for woman- apart from his sisters of course. All these women cared about was his money and status due to his talent, some no older than twelve being dragged around from suitor to suitor by their fathers. They were raised to prize money and status above anything else so they could find a husband that could take care of them. Teenage girls were regularly married off to rich old men according their father's will. After years of putting up with the constant bombardment of these girls, desperate to be able to marry someone close to their age, Ichigo was fed up with the entire gender. The sculptor much preferred the silence of his creations.

A familiar voice interrupted Ichigo from his thoughts as the man walked into his work studio, "Salve."

"Salve, Chad," Ichigo greeted. "How goes the delivery business today?"

Chad merely grunted as he set down a raw chunk of stone Ichigo had ordered for his next commission. Ichigo enjoyed Chad's visits, silent though they may be; it was a comfortable silence. They had been friends since childhood and after going through so much together, small talk seemed unnecessary.

"Amazing," Chad commented, gesturing towards the sculpture. "Seems like a real person."

"Thanks. I think it's nearly finished. Still waiting on the wig and toga though," Ichigo explained. He didn't understand why that perverted priestess wanted it that way, but it wasn't for him to argue with the customer's wishes.

"I'll stop by Orihime's place after work to see if they are ready," Chad offered as he turned to finish the rest of his deliveries.

"Thanks, Chad." Ichigo's eyes automatically returned back to his work.

"I have never seen you look at anything like you look at that statue, Ichigo," Chad said in a serious tone before bidding farewell as he walked out the door, "Vale."

Ichigo sighed, running a hand through his hair as he walked over to his workbench, no longer in the mood to work. "Not my fault I can't stop thinking about the damn thing. I haven't been able get a single decent night's sleep because of those damn dreams…" he muttered to himself, cleaning his tools as he did every night before starting his dinner.

"_The last time I checked, a sculpture couldn't force you to talk to it all day, have daydreams about it, or touch it so longingly, King."_

"Damnit! Go away," Ichigo muttered, too tired to have to deal with his hollowed half.

"_Nope! Like it or not, you're stuck with me forever," _ the voice teased Ichigo from darkest depths of his own mind.

"Whatever," Ichigo said dismissively. "You're no better than me. I can hear all those perverted comments you make about him all the time."

"_So? At least I can admit to myself what's really going on here."_

The sculptor cursed loudly, slamming a fist into his workbench before deciding that he needed to get the hell out of the house. The sounds of his tools clattering against his workbench echoed throughout the room as he tossed them aside. Damn voices needed to learn to mind their own business. Scowl firmly in place, Ichigo made his way through the forum, over towards the district where the worn down temple resided as the sun began to sink in the sky.

* * *

><p>As he got closer to the temple, the young man braced himself for the coming onslaught of 'business propositions' from the prostitutes lined the streets. How a temple was able to prosper in this area was beyond him. Ichigo supposed prostitutes had to pay their respects to the gods as well. Making his way through the crowd of unfortunate looking women, Ichigo searched out the head priestess. The small touches of these destitute women as walked through the crowded halls made him sick. Tired of the jeering comments they made as he passed, the sculptor had nearly given up on his search before he heard a teasing tone, "Still looking for the perfect woman? There are many women here but none are more perfect than me."<p>

Ichigo grit his teeth in irritation as he turned to face the dark skinned priestess. "We had a meeting scheduled for today and you failed to show up. _Again."_

"I do apologize, but as you can see, I had more pressing matters to attend to," she said, gesturing to the massive crowd congregating inside and around the temple.

"Like drinking and preying on the young woman in the temple, I suppose."

Yoruichi laughed deeply. "I like you Ichigo. I don't understand how you could still be unattached at your age. With your looks and money, you could have any woman you wanted."

"I don't need some woman to wait on me hand and foot because they were forced into a marriage or need someone to leech off of to survive."

"How very noble of you, but I assure you that taking care of you would not be a chore but the greatest pleasure a woman could ask for. It should be a crime for someone like you to still be a virgin."

"WHAT? I AM NOT!" Ichigo denied in a voice slightly too loud to be believable. "Look. You need to come by and inform me of any alterations you want made before I finish."

"Eh. Don't worry about it," Yoruichi said, waving him off. "I trust your talent. Just let me know when you're done."

"Fine," Ichigo huffed, intent on leaving as soon as possible. The sculptor frowned even harder when he realized that soon his work would be finished and he would have to move on to work on something else. He spooked the girls around him as he grunted in frustration. The aura surrounding the young man was enough to repel the desperate woman as he stormed out of the temple. Ichigo was sick and tired of his thoughts constantly revolving around the man. '_No, the statue'_, he corrected mentally. It wasn't a real person. The sooner he got that through his head the better.

* * *

><p>"What crawled up your butt and died?" Karin asked as she saw the look on her brother's face as he walked through the door.<p>

"Shut up, Karin," Ichigo replied automatically before pausing as he realized he had completely forgotten that his sisters were coming over for dinner tonight. Karin had obviously been lounging on one of the couches as she waited for him to return. It always surprised the sculptor how grown up his sisters looked now. The simple white clothing complimented her dark hair that was carefully tied up and styled.

"I'm serious, Ichi-nii. The last few months you've just been getting more and more ornery and we're fed up." Ichigo looked at his sister with disbelief.

"Yes, Yuzu too," Karin answered his unspoken question. "You know she's too polite to say anything but she really worries about you."

"Sorry. Work has been a little… strange," Ichigo explained. "Where is Yuzu anyways?"

"She's probably praying at some temple for her brother to find a decent wife to take care of him," she said dryly.

"I told you both; I have no intention of marrying anyone."

"Who is supposed to take care of you then?"

"I can take care of myself just fine, thanks," Ichigo retorted.

"Spending more time with statues than people doesn't qualify as fine, Ichi-nii. You need to get out and meet some _real_ people."

Ichigo rolled his eyes as he left to go wash his face before dinner.

* * *

><p>Shortly after his sisters had left, Ichigo stormed back into his workshop, itching to punch that cocky smirk right off of the statue's face. Anything to get the damn thing out of his mind… 'Control, Ichigo. Control,' he repeated to himself mentally. He refused to break the thing only to have to sculpt it again for free. Why'd he have to carve it such an infuriating manner in the first place? Ichigo couldn't even remember if his dreams about the man had started before or after he started working on this commission anymore.<p>

Ichigo walked up to the statue, cocking his head to one side as he inspected it yet again. He had truly outdone himself with this one. With a strong pose complimenting the determined look and cocky smile the statue held- it truly did possess the aura of a god. Without thinking, Ichigo's hand reached out to run a hand over the beautifully carved chest, down the statue's sides as his hand came to rest on the man's hip. A sense of calm filled him as he felt the smooth cool planes of ivory under his fingertips. "How can something so beautiful be so maddening…" Ichigo muttered to himself, allowing his fingers to trace along the sculpture's strong jawline before he forced himself to stop.

As he turned to retrieve his tools from his work bench, the sculptor could have sworn that he saw the bastard's grin grow even wider out of the corner of his eye. Ichigo whipped his head around, staring at the statue in disbelief before shaking his head. Like that was even possible… Statues couldn't move. Karin was right; he really did need to get out more often. Besides, there was no way that grin could get any bigger.

"Pathetic..." Ichigo sighed as he turned around, spotting the toga and wig sitting on his work bench. Chad must have dropped them off after work.

As Ichigo picked up the artfully-made blue wig and placed it carefully upon the statue's head. It was exactly as he had imagined it to be. A mass of light blue hair carefully tamed yet still had a wild look about it- a perfect match for a panther god.

Inspecting the custom-made toga as he picked it up, Ichigo had to admit that Orihime had truly outdone herself with this. The green accent was lined with an intricate gold and black pattern that would make it look perfectly natural on a statue of a god's likeness. It was no wonder that she was celebrated as the weaving princess of all Rome.

After Ichigo had finished wrestling the toga onto the statue, something that took much longer than he had anticipated, he picked up his palette and began to ponder what to do next. Deciding on a vivid dark blue to rival his wild light blue hair, the sculptor had a determined look on his face as he began carefully painting color onto the statue's eyes as he worked well into the night to apply the finishing touches on his creation.

* * *

><p>Ichigo found himself walking amongst the trees of the cool forest as he stumbled upon a beautiful clearing with a small lake in the center. Having been unable to find anything to eat for several days, Ichigo's belly rumbled from hunger and he immediately set upon catching a fish to eat. After several failed attempts, he had finally managed to catch a fish and began gathering wood to make a fire to cook it upon.<p>

It was by far the best fish he had ever tasted in his life. When he was finished eating his small feast, Ichigo was caught by surprise when a sword was suddenly plunged through his chest. Turning around to see a small dark-haired midget of a woman smiling coyly behind him, she looked as if she possessed some great secret. Before he could open his mouth to ask the multitude of questions his mind was suddenly filled with, the pain had disappeared along with the girl.

Inspecting his chest, he found no hole in his clothing or his body. Checking his fingers for blood, a sudden feeling washed over him… as if all his worries had suddenly slipped away. Feeling lighter than he had in years and a little giddy, Ichigo smiled as he wiggled his fingers. Catching a glimpse of bright blue between his fingers, Ichigo saw _him_ across the lake with that infuriating grin plastered across his face.

Ichigo didn't feel his normal resentment towards the man, instead had adrenaline rushing through his veins- feeling as if he was burning from the inside out. Bounding up and around the lake to find the enticing creature, the chase ensued. The blue-haired man refused to be caught and Ichigo refused to give up on catching him. Somehow he knew that the awful burning would stop and his questions answered if he could catch the man.

Suddenly the man in front of him fell as his foot got caught in a stray root sticking up and was unable to recover before Ichigo had pounced on him. Hovering above the man, he quirked an eyebrow in confusion as the ever-present grin on his captive's face didn't fade but instead managed to grow even wider. Before Ichigo could even catch his breath, his eyes went wide as the man underneath him started to transform into a sleek panther…

* * *

><p>Ichigo woke with a start, sitting up suddenly, drenched in sweat. No matter how many times he had the dream; it always played out the same. Cursing lowly to himself, the sculptor sat up, giving up on any chance on getting back to sleep. It was nearly sunrise so needless to say, Ichigo was a bit surprised to see his sisters sitting up waiting for him in his kitchen. Whatever conversation they had been having had ceased as soon as he entered the room.<p>

"Ohayo, Onii-chan!" Yuzu greeted enthusiastically, entirely too enthusiastic before sunrise in Ichigo's opinion.

"Yo, Ichi-nii," Karin greeted, raising a hand tiredly as she cringed slightly at her sister's perky morning behavior.

"Hey… Not that I'm not happy to see you, but-"

"What the hell are we doing here?" Karin finished for him.

"Yeah."

Yuzu began to explain, "We decided-"

"You decided," Karin corrected.

After throwing a dirty look at her twin, Yuzu continued to explain, "We're going to the temple. I refuse to believe that your mood has been your own these last few months."

"She thinks someone cursed you," Karin summarized as she tried to rub the sleep from her eyes.

"Come on, Onii-chan…" Yuzu pled, "When was the last time you made an offering at the temple? I know how you tend to be forgetful about these things, but I don't want the gods to look down upon you without favor any longer! I already brought something; all you have to do is come with us."

Ichigo smiled, grateful for his sisters' concern. He truly missed having his sisters in the house.

* * *

><p>It wasn't that Ichigo didn't believe in the gods… He respected them and went through the rituals just like every good Roman did. He simply preferred to think that the gods had better things to spend their time on rather than listen to people whine about how horrible their lives were, hoping for some divine intervention on their behalf. As he peered over at his sisters praying quietly for his sake, Ichigo figured that one small prayer couldn't hurt.<p>

"I don't know why I am the way I am," Ichigo said quietly, hoping that someone was listening. "It seems so effortless for everyone else to interact with one another. I want to find someone to share my life with. I want these feelings to be towards a person, not an object…"

After offering a sacrifice to the gods, the Kurosaki family walked to Yuzu's house for a quick meal before Ichigo headed towards his workshop. He wanted to finish the statue as soon as possible and tell Chad to deliver it to the temple at his earliest convenience. However thankful he was for his time spent sculpting the statue, he refused to pine over some object that could never return his affections.

When Ichigo entered the shop, he stopped dead in his tracks. His heart pounded wildly as he saw that the statue was gone. _Gone! _

Chad would have never removed the statue without his express consent and he highly doubted that the priestess would have taken it. A thief? Unlikely, but possible… Ichigo stepped back through the doorway as his head spun with possibilities and began pacing around the small pool of water that lay directly underneath the skylight in the atrium. The sculptor paused and groaned when he realized that if the statue was gone, he was screwed… completely screwed. Ichigo prided himself on the fact that he had never missed a deadline since he had taken over the family business.

"Oh good. You're home," a deep voice said from the doorway. Slowly turning his head to face the doorway, Ichigo immediately began questioning his sanity as his eyes fell upon the form of a blue haired devil in the doorway eating a loaf of his bread. Not quite knowing what to say, starting to form a word before changing his mind and snapping his mouth shut.

A chill ran up his spine when he heard the man start laughing heartily. "Ya look like some sorta fish."

Ichigo scowled. "I do not," he denied, slapping a hand to his head as an afterthought. "Although I don't know why I'm wasting my time talking to some sort of hallucination… Karin must have slipped something into my wine…"

"Oi. I'm standing right here."

"Oh yeah? And exactly how is it that a statue started talking, walking, eating, and standing all on your own, huh?" Ichigo questioned.

"Not sure exactly. This is all kinda new to me too, ya know. One minute I was minding my own business, the next I was hungry and decided to go get some food," the man explained with a shrug.

Ichigo approached the man for a closer inspection, it certainly seemed real enough. Reaching forward slowly, the sculptor's eyes went wide. For the first time, he felt actual skin under his fingers instead of smooth ivory.

A cocky smile spread across the man's face as he swallowed a hunk of bread. "You sure stare at me an awful lot," he teased.

Ichigo blushed. "I do not."

"Of course not," Grimmjow retorted sarcastically, caressing Ichigo's hip much in the same way the sculptor had touched him the previous night. "Ya don't like touching me either. I must admit," the man said as he took a moment to inspect himself. "Yer damn good at what you do- even if you are a pervert."

"I am _not_ a pervert," Ichigo insisted before he was swiftly backed up against the walls of his city home by the insistent, blue-haired devil. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Do you realize how excruciating it was to watch while you touched me? To have you stare at me with that look in your eyes without being able to move? Unable to touch you?"

"You remember all of that?" Ichigo asked quietly.

"I remember everything. All those fleeting touches, overzealous inspections… you would talk to me as practiced your craft with such a determined look on your face." Ichigo opened his mouth in denial before his mouth was quickly covered. "Don't try to deny that you're loving every minute of this either," Grimmjow added as pressed his full weight into the lean body in front of him, whispering into the sculptor's ear, "I don't like liars."

Ichigo groaned, another wave of heat spreading throughout his body as he was thoroughly pinned against the wall of his own home. Deciding that he had given up on caring whether or not this was all just his imagination dreaming up something perverted or not, Ichigo decided that he'd be damned if he didn't enjoy whatever was happening to the fullest. Ichigo's lips crashed into the other man's, savoring every moment of this fleeting dream.

For the first time in years, the sculptor felt all of his worries melt away as he lost himself in a kiss he would remember for all his years to come. Nothing else mattered and suddenly realization hit Ichigo hard- the love he had been denying for so long had finally become a wish come true.

And like all first kisses, it was over entirely too soon; the two both caught their breath as Ichigo's head rested on the other's shoulder. "The name's Grimmjow, by the way," Grimmjow growled into the sculptor's ear as he held him close. "You'll be screaming it later, so don't forget it."

Ichigo smiled against the man's neck as he thought to himself, _'Forget a guy like Grimmjow Jaegerjaques? Impossible.'_

* * *

><p><em>Bleach x Pygmalion story.<em>

Latin  
>Salve - Greeting<br>Vale - Farewell_  
><em>


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